


Unexpected Addition

by writelikeitsgoingoutofstyle (twoandahalfslytherins)



Series: Convenient Group of Femslash Fics [22]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Home remedies, John's gay and pining okay, Modern AU, Mulligan is named after Hercules- I didn't just turn him into a cat, apparently for every couple I ship I need a cat fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-24
Updated: 2016-08-04
Packaged: 2018-07-26 13:17:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7575397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/twoandahalfslytherins/pseuds/writelikeitsgoingoutofstyle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John Laurens has a plan. Sort of. Build a tiny house, fight the system, figure himself out along the way.</p><p>Unfortunately, tiny living isn't always the best for animals, and as much as John loves Mulligan- he wants him to be happy.</p><p>Enter Maria and Eliza.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. New Beginnings

Sunlight filtered through the curtains when Eliza walked into the house, and she stared at the box it highlighted in the living room. “Maria?”

There was a muffled ‘hold on’ from the back, and Eliza waited patiently for her girlfriend to explain. Couldn’t help but smile when the woman stepped out of the kitchen, long hair pulled into a ponytail and something that looked a lot like flour across her nose.

“You’re home early,” Maria murmured as she pulled Eliza in for a kiss.

It was a touch of domesticity that Eliza was never going to get over. Getting to come home after a long day at the office and have Maria waiting for her was a dream come true. “Had a lunch meeting with Angelica to go over the upcoming fundraiser, decided to clock out after that.”

Starting a non-profit with her sisters had been a risk, but they’d managed to make it work. With trust funds to help them through the lean years, they’d been able to grow their little organization from just the three of them, to a healthy thirty employees. It wasn’t huge by any means, but the work that they did to help bring at-risk girls programming was amazing.

Being able to work with Angelica and Peggy to do it? Eliza didn’t have words. Before Angelica had come up with the idea, they’d been spread out. Peggy had still been in college, Eliza had been teaching at a local elementary school while Angelica was all the way in Paris acting as a museum curator. Only seeing each other on the holidays.

Not anymore. Not that there weren’t some days that she wished there was a little more space, especially when files went missing or there was menial work to do. But the late night bonding and lunch meetings were more than worth the blood sweat and tears.

“Come on, I’m making cookies.” Maria tugged her hand and Eliza shook her head fondly before following her.

Raised an eyebrow when she realized that not only was Maria making cookies, she’d already made some sort of casserole. “What’s the occasion?”

Maria paused, glancing over her shoulder even as she bent to grab a baking pan. “Don’t tell me you forgot.”

Their anniversary wasn’t for another two months, it wasn’t either of their birthdays. Halloween wasn’t until later in the month, and there weren’t any other holidays nearby that she could think of. “Er?”

“John.” John? Oh- “See, there’s the light of recognition. We’re going over there tonight.”

Even after her breakup with Alex, she’d still remained friends with not only him but a fair bit of the friend group they’d built together. When she and Maria had started dating, it’d only been natural to introduce her to the ones who were left in the area. A number that seemed determined to dwindle.

“I know he wasn’t exactly overly attached to the thing,” Eliza said as she propped herself up on the counter to watch Maria work. “But it’s still strange to know that he’s moving.”

“Don’t get all morose yet,” Maria teased. “He’ll still be in town for a little while where he figures out where he’s going to go next.”

John’s newest adventure was a house on wheels. A tiny house that he’d spent the last few months building in his backyard as he prepared to rent out his other home. Renting it, he pointed out, meant that he could control who moved in. Next week he was supposed to start talking to people at the local LGBT center to see if there was anyone in need of a place to stay.

Other than that, he was well on his way to being off the grid and completely sustainable. Of course, his daddy’s money went a long way in helping that happen. Not that John liked to admit those things. No, his anti-capitalist, pro-eco ways were as far away from his father’s political beliefs as they could get. And the tiny house was just his newest way of proving that.

A fine sentiment, though Eliza knew she could never do it. Material possession might be a fleeting attachment in modern society, but it was her attachment all the same. “I just don’t know how Mulligan is going to handle it.”

Something flickered across Maria’s face. “About that-”

Suddenly the box in the living room made sense. “Maria.”

“I mean, obviously, you agree that Mulligan wouldn’t do well with traveling.” Maria’s hands drifted to her apron, twisting the fabric there slightly. “And John’s concerned because what if he decides to go to a really hot or cold climate next?”

It wasn’t that Eliza didn’t love Mulligan, she did. The world could not have produced a more loving tabby. But having a pet was a big step, and Eliza wasn’t sure she was ready for that.

Apparently sensing her hesitation, Maria clasped her hands together. “Please? It would help John out and I’m home all day anyway. It’d be nice to have some company.”

While not exactly a homemaker, Maria did work from home illustrating children’s books. When Eliza had met her, she’d been working two jobs to support herself. She’d been a barista during the day and a street artist at night, performing what Eliza liked to refer to as small feats of magic for passersby. Once she stopped having to worry about rent, it'd given her the chance to explore her true calling.

“How long have you known Mulligan needed a place to go?” Eliza asked instead of answering her.

“Today.” At least that made Eliza feel better, that there hadn’t been some conspiracy to keep things from her. “He called earlier and asked if we’d be able to take him tonight when we left.”

The timer went off, and Eliza scooted over so that Maria could pull the cookies out of the oven before hopping off the counter. After all, there was no good reason to not help with the cleanup process.

As she rinsed the bowl that Maria had been using for her batter, Eliza considered what it’d be like to have a cat. Mulligan was an indoor cat, thankfully. No need to worry about letting him in and out, no worrying about him when he was out. They’d need to get a litter box, not to mention a scratching post. Probably some toys as well.

Once the baking pan had cooled down enough to pick up, she placed it in the sink as well. Tapped it for a moment before turning to look at Maria as she packaged everything together. “We’ll need to go by the pet store and figure out where the litter pan is going.”

Agreeing to take the cat might have been a bad idea, but Maria’s smile made it all the better. “Mulligan is going to be so happy here.”

Eliza could only hope so.


	2. Chapter 2

There were rooms in her house larger than the structure in front of them. John's truck was still hooked up to the trailer, splattered with a ridiculous amount of mud that made Eliza openly cringe. At least the house itself was clean, a dark blue in color with a nice off-white trim that probably hadn't been his decision. Matching wasn't exactly his area of expertise after all. 

Outside of the house was Lafayette, hands waving as he talked to Laurens. Whether he was lecturing him about leaving or simply excited about something was hard to tell without a clear view of his face. It was of Eliza's favorite things about the man, just how emotive he could be.

Maria tugged on Eliza's hand, pulling her forward and John waved them over, clearly pleased to have a reason to escape his current conversation. "Want to see inside?"

Honestly, Eliza wasn't sure how the four of them were going to fit, but she'd promised Maria that she'd be on her best behavior. The recognition of how small their group caught in her throat, a bitterness that she didn't want to acknowledge. She'd been expecting one more face in the crowd, but other than that, no wonder John didn't feel particularly inclined to stay. Who did he have left to anchor him there?

"Ham not coming?" Maria asked as she ducked inside, ignoring Eliza's cringe at the question.

Sure, she'd been wondering it herself, but it probably wasn't the best move to draw attention to it. John opened his mouth to answer and then stopped, hand over his mouth as his chest positively rattled. Poor thing had probably come down with something while working on his little home on wheels. When the fit had passed, he walked further inside toward what had to be the kitchen area so that he could wash his hands and grab a bottle of water from the slim fridge on the far wall. "Sorry about that. And you know how he is- work."

Of course, Alex would choose to stay late at work rather than see his best friend's life project. Maybe, if John were lucky, he'd carve out a small chunk of time for lunch before John left to see the world- but even that wasn't a given. No need to dwell on that though, they'd all made their beds when they chose to befriend him.

Instead, Eliza turned her focus to actually soaking in the house. John was standing in his little kitchen nook, it was a bit claustrophobic, and Eliza couldn't imagine trying to cook in but would probably serve John well. There were two lofts, one of which appeared to be stuffed haphazardly with his camping gear, and while she couldn't see the other from where she was, it most likely held his bedroom. Lafayette was lounging on the couch, Mulligan on his lap and the small shut off space was probably his bathroom.

"It's-" Eliza frowned trying to come up with something that wasn't insulting- "cozy."

John nodded, proudly patting his countertop when another coughing fit overtook him and Maria stepped forward to pat him on the back. "Do you have anything to help with that?"

Not 'do you plan on going to the doctor' because the answer was almost definitely a resounding no. Lafayette was the only reasonable one of the bunch regarding that sort of thing, even Hercules for all his health consciousness hadn't been a fan of actually going in. Which was ridiculous, but Eliza had given up on chiding them years ago.

"I'll be fine," John muttered once he'd gotten a few gulps of water in him. "Just a cough. Be up and running by the time I figure out where I'm heading."

Maria didn't look convinced. 

"I have been telling him," Lafayette said from his space to the side, and Eliza turned to look at him, already hating that she couldn't stand far enough back to see both him and John at the same time. "That it is not a good idea to leave while he is feeling so unwell. It would do him to wait a while longer."

"He only wants me to stick around so that I can go see his dance," John snapped. "It's nothing to do with my health and I already told him that if I'm within a few hours, I'll come see it anyway."

"But he doesn't believe you?" Maria hazarded a guess.

"He will go away and he will be busy finding himself and he will forget all about us." Lafayette looked off to the side, refusing to look in John's direction. "I will not apologize for wanting one last hoorah."

Unpleased with the way he was being petted, Mulligan hissed before jumping off of the man's lap, choosing to rub against Maria's leg instead. Her girlfriend stooped slightly to pick the furry thing up, rubbing her face against his side. "You two need to stop, you're upsetting the kitty."

John stared at her for a moment before exhaling. "Yeah."

Because really, John couldn't complain about Lafayette wanting him to stay a little longer. After all, when Hercules had left for Ireland, John had almost immediately gotten the cat. Had refused to go out for weeks, citing that he needed to bond with it. That he didn't want Mulligan to be scared about being left alone. Unwilling to admit that he'd been moping. Eliza had never gotten confirmation, but she'd always suspected that Hercules had been more than a roommate to the man.

Which meant it wasn't exactly the same. Lafayette had Adrienne, had his dance crew, had friends on both sides of the ocean. 

But that didn't mean that John didn't mean a lot to them. Didn't make Lafayette's fears any less valid. Hercules still facetimed with them on occasion, he'd even come back for Christmas a time or two. It wasn't the same as before though. It was part of growing up, though. Plenty of people lost touch with their college pals. The distance was one factor in speeding things up, but Alex was proof that it wasn't the only one.

Thankfully after that, things simmered down. Lafayette allowed himself to be distracted with the details of his upcoming performance, and John perched himself on the stairs so that they could chat more easily. Finally muttered that he would stay for a little longer if it meant that much to him.

Probably for the best, but to her side, Maria fidgeted. "Does that mean you're going to keep Mulligan or?" 

John shook his head, curly hair dancing in front of his eyes. "Doesn't much like it here. Think he's a bit too cooped up. You'll take good care of him?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For writing related prompts/questions/if you want to see what I'm working on at any given time- you can find me at writelikeitsgoingoutofstyle on tumblr. It is entirely writing related now- comments about when chapters drop, answered asks about fics and old mini fics that haven't made their way over to AO3 yet. I will probably? be doing mini fic challenges again soon when I finish up some of the stuff I have open here. 
> 
> I deleted my previous personal blog because Too Many Eyes- where people had followed me for Hamilton things or for writing- and then had to deal with my personal stuff on top of that. If you were a follower who enjoyed seeing my actual personal posts- you are free to hit me up on writelikeitsgoingoutofstyle for that url.


End file.
